As the buzz surrounding the 2008 election heats up, Boston College's Church in the 21st Century Center has invited Catholic presidential candidates and current senators Sam Brownback (R-Kan) and Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) to discuss the challenges that intersection of faith and public policy brings to American life in a debate titled "Catholic Senators and Presidential Candidates: Their Faith and Public Policy" on Monday.
Brownback and Dodd, representing opposing sides of the political spectrum, will give their opinions on a variety of polarizing issues, such as abortion, euthanasia, gay marriage, and "just war," which forces them to grapple with their dual loyalty to church doctrine and secular political principles. The debate will be moderated by Tim Russert, host of NBC's Meet the Press and political analyst for NBC Nightly News and The Today Show.
Brownback, a Kansas senator since 1996, is perhaps most well known for his hard-line stances against abortion and embryonic stem-cell research. As a self-described social conservative, Brownback also opposes same-sex marriage and favors teaching intelligent design in the classroom. A former broadcaster, he has also worked to regulate the airways through broadcast decency bills and stronger FCC regulation in response to the controversy following the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show fiasco.
Brownback's accomplishments in the Senate also reflect his strong commitment to human rights. In 2000, he led the effort to enact the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act, the first federal law enacted to protect trafficking victims and crack down on their traffickers.
He chairs the Helsinki Commission, the most important U.S. human rights agency, and has advocated action to end the Sudanese genocide in Darfur, including divestment of his own personal assets to companies that work with the Sudanese government. Raised Methodist, he converted to Catholicism in 2002 while in office.
Dodd, a high-profile leader in the Democratic party, has been a senator since 1989 and was chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1995-1997. He is best known for his work relating to children's issues. He organized the first children's caucus, and has advocated for safe and affordable child care, as well as expanded health care for children.
Dodd also fought to enact the Family and Medical Leave Act, which allows for 12 weeks of work leave per 12 month period in order to care for a newborn child or a sick relative, among other circumstances, without fear of job loss.
While opposed to same-sex marriage, he is in favor of civil unions and opposes an anti-same-sex marriage amendment to the Constitution. A supporter of the American Civil Liberties Union, Dodd has spoken out against torture and denial of habeas corpus - a writ ordering a person in custody to be brought before a court - rights to prisoners in U.S. custody.
This is the second year in a row that BC C21 has organized an event featuring leading American political experts and politicians. "Last year, Father Leahy asked Tim Russert if he would moderate a discussion on faith and public policy," said University Spokesman Jack Dunn.
"Events like this help us to explore the differences of opinion that exist among Catholic politicians in hope of helping voters make informed decisions. Our attempt is to bring two leading Catholic candidates together to explore these differences in light of the fact that the Catholic vote is the nation's largest religious bloc," said Dunn, adding that it is appropriate that this dialogue is happening here at BC.
When asked if there is or can ever be an "ideal" Catholic candidate for president, Dunn did not believe this was the case, highlighting the many differences of opinion between Senators Brownback and Dodd. "No candidate has a monopoly on the Catholic sensibilities," he said.
Statistics seem to support Dunn's estimation. The Catholic vote has traditionally been divided and it is difficult to predict whether Catholics will lean slightly towards the Democratic or Republican parties.
In 2004, many experts believe President Bush's victory was largely due to the Catholic support he garnered, beating out John Kerry in the Catholic vote by a margin of 52 percent to 47 percent. In the 2006 midterm elections however, 55 percent of Catholics voted in favor of the Democratic party.
To attend the event, students and community members must register online for a seat. Though Brownback and Dodd are not atop the latest polls, the race for president is still in its early stages and an event like this, which has the potential to be historical, is not to be missed. n
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